| Description |
The "New Philosophy of Mechanisms" has been developed in light of dissatisfaction with previous philosophical models of scientific explanation. It comprises a variety of different views regarding the nature of mechanistic explanation, mechanistic strategies of investigation, as well as a mechanistic theory of causation. This dissertation addresses two basic questions regarding this new philosophy of mechanisms. First, what exactly is it? Second, what is its scope? In response to the first question I argue that while the new mechanists are informed by a variety of different cases, defend a variety of different theses, and are motivated by a variety of different problems, all share an emphasis on the value of mechanistic reasoning to scientific understanding. In response to the second question, I argue that the new philosophy of mechanisms extends to integrate with statistical reasoning in modern evolutionary biology. The upshot is a better picture of the nature, limit, and scope of the most recent and promising philosophical account of scientific reasoning. |
